Friday 7th June is National Fish and Chip Day in the UK, and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has taken the opportunity to look at the day in a cyber context and raise awareness around phishing scams, with a new #MulletOver campaign.
Phishing attacks, whether they’re delivered over email, text or phone call, are a common security challenge that both individuals and companies across the UK face on a daily basis.
Verizon’s 2018 “Data Breach Investigations Report” showed that more than 90% of all malware is still delivered to victims via email. Between April –September 2018, social media and email account compromises were the most reported form of cybercrime.
Analysis shows that phishing emails were a common enabler for these compromises.
Additionally, some of the most reported scams to Action Fraud start with an unsolicited text, email or call. From emails and text messages asking people to “verify” account details to cold callers claiming to be from banks, the goal of a phishing attack is usually the same, to trick people into revealing personal and financial information.
Criminals are constantly evolving the tactics they use to carry out these phishing attacks, which is why it can be difficult for people to know what to look out for. The NCSC and Police Scotland have advice that can help protect from most phishing attacks:
- don’t click on the links or attachments in suspicious emails
- never respond to unsolicited messages and calls that ask for personal or financial details
If they think the communication might be genuine, people are advised to contact the company directly using contact details they know to be correct, such as the phone number on official correspondence, and not the contact information provided in the message.
As part of #MulletOver, a series of information images summing up this advice has been released:
- #MulletOver – Who’s really calling?
- #MulletOver – Don’t take the bait
- #MulletOVer – Scam calls and texts
- #MulletOver – Report phishing
- #MulletOver – It’s a scam
For further information, including tips for online protection, please visit the government’s Cyber Aware website.
If you have been the victim of fraud or cybercrime, report it via the Action Fraud website.
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